The Unacceptable Truth
by WallabeeJump
Summary: In every age, a dazzling hero appears to blind people with their legends. In every age, a sacrifice appears to clean up the "messes" that the masses create. Who the person truly was or what the person truly wished for doesn't matter. The Homura in grail war story that never gets anywhere. Also contains EMIYA to splash up the inevitable Kirei vs Kiritsugu confrontation.
1. Chapter 1

In every age, a dazzling hero appears to blind people with their legends.

To accomplish "miracles" that the masses could never do on their own, but all miracles come at great cost.

In every age, a sacrifice appears to clean up the "messes" that the masses create.

A hero is of great value, but the sacrifice behind it has none.

In every age, a legend is created by distorting fact. The ugliness of reality is stripped away and what is passed on and remembered is decided by the masses.

In every age, the people have refused to see the bloodshed their "messes" create and the sacrifice that was made to clean it up.

Even though the hero is sacred, the person behind the hero is ultimately worthless...if a hero is created in the first place.

Who the person truly was or what the person truly wished for doesn't matter. Adding words that were never said and removing words that were are a matter of course.

The very life behind the hero is insignificant to what the masses have decided for what the hero should represent to suit their own beliefs.

The dead do not talk and symbols do not speak.

For the world to function, such sacrifices must be perpetually made to appease the masses. Even if what they did had meaning, they themselves individually were ultimately worthless compared to the whole.

 _The Zeroth Encounter_

Speed beyond measure.

Strength without compare.

A completely incomprehensible battle, yet a battle that possessed no lack of grace.

Two knights that could only exist in the realm of fantasy were engaged in battle.

Two lances that struck without pause, yet they never found their target.

The spearman's attack was relentless, but because it had to be, for speed and reach were the only advantages the Lancer-class servant had over the swordswoman in blue.

With the special properties of the spearman's weapons, armour was a non-factor, which the swordswoman soon realized and was about to forgo...

Until she saw something pierce Lancer's chest from behind. Saber quickly realized that a third party was attacking them and quickly covered her decoy master before the force of an explosion propelled the two into the side of a shipping container.

The red Archer perched on a building 4km away did not know what to think of the particular Grail War he was summoned into. It certainly wasn't the one he had experienced when he was alive. He could still recall the blonde haired swordswoman that saved him and would continue on saving him, which was why he instinctively did not shoot her, but the lance wielder she was fighting was a different story. It's a funny thing really as it was a Lancer class servant that she had saved him from in their first meeting. The Lancer class servant of the 5th Grail War had pierced his heart and now he was here, piercing the heart of another Lancer in the 4th Grail War.

Yes, the 4th Grail War, the war which would lead to his beginning, but he knew this was an entirely different war and not just because he had replaced the King of Heroes. He did not know of the Assassin class servant in the war that lead to him, but the one he was working with right now certainly wasn't a Hassan, though the Assassin of his war wasn't a Hassan either.

Perched on top of a lamp post in front of Saber was a black haired girl wielding a bow of the same colour which only reminded her of the master she was currently in service to. The enemy was wearing an outfit that was certainly of this era's youth, with a purple gem adorned on the hand which matched the eyes. Along with the bow, attached to her forearm was an unusual buckler. Perched on her shoulder was some sort of albino animal with finger like projections jutting from the ears on her shoulder adorned with colours that only reminded her of the family she was currently serving.

Certainly, for any participant in the Grail War who was observing the scene could be forgiven to think that this girl was the servant of the Bow, but she wasn't.

Though slightly disoriented by the surprise attack moments ago, streaks of violet light shot forward towards Saber and the white haired woman that accompanied her, but all those projectiles were deflected with ease.

"Archer...you...", Saber was cut off as "Archer" shot a second volley. The newcomer had no interest in talking. Certainly, the enemy in front of her reminded Saber of her true master during this Holy Grail War, Kiritsugu.

Kiritsugu who was witnessing the scene behind the scope of his WA-2000, was slighlty unnerved by the recent events. "Archer" saw an opportunity for an easy kill and simply took it. It seemed that despite being "heroes", not all the heroic spirits could be counted on to be anything like his own and at worst, as pragmatic as he was, but to Kiritsugu, "Archer" made a mistake. No ranged fighter in the right mind would reveal their own position to the enemy if it was avoidable. Maybe that was some backwards thinking from a bygone era where soldiers fought on open fields, yet the "Archer" in his sights did not match any descriptions of the past heroes he had read up on, but what was he to expect when even his own contracted spirit was of the opposite gender than the legends had told. What was also unusual was the small otherworldly albino creature perched on her shoulder that vaguely reminded him of the ideal specifications he had proposed to Acht for the design of the lesser Grail Vessel.

"A small, portable, self-sustaining package shaped like a small animal."

That suggestion had triggered the events in which he had to save the one who would become his wife.

" Did the other participants prepare another grail vessel?"

Abandoning such thoughts, he was about to order Saber to counter attack, but then he realized doing so would only leave Irisviel exposed.

It didn't matter if Irisiviel was a master of this war or the grail vessel, "Archer" would shoot her with those arrows of violet light as soon as Saber left her side, so Kiritsugu ordered her to take his wife to safety.

Despite not summoning the servants he had expected, Tohsaka Tokiomi was pleased with the results as he viewed the battle from one of his familiars. Though he had some distaste for what Archer and Assassin proposed, in the end, they produced results.

Lancer was eliminated from the war and hopefully all those observing the battle on the docks were fooled into thinking Assassin was "Archer".

This deception served three purposes.

The first was to hide the true range of Archer's bow.

The second was to hide the true Archer's existence.

The third was for the other participants to overestimate Assassin's direct firepower.

Assassins could not generally compete with other servants in a direct battle, but they all generally possessed great ability in the art of escaping.

Whatever noble phantasm Archer had used, it was powerful. Powerful enough to dispatch a servant in a single hit and incinerate the surrounding area in an explosion.

If that were not enough, it could be used as far as 4 kilometres away and hopefully, the other participants would remain ignorant of this fact.

Saber complied with Kiritsugu's order and carried Irsiviel off bridal style with their escape aided by smoke shells Maiya had fired from a distant mortar.

A certain student with his burly contracted spirit decided not to reveal themselves at the moment as they were certain "Archer" wasn't interested in any alliance and would shoot them on sight.

A knight in armour obscured by unnatural back fumes appeared on the battlefield in search of the "Archer" his master had ordered to attack, but just as quickly as she appeared on the battlefield, "Archer" had left it. "Archer" had simply blinked out of existence before the armoured Berserker-class servant could swing the telephone pole he had armed himself with.

The initial scuffle of the Grail War left many disappointed. Kariya failed to catch Tokiomi's servant, but there was someone else who was in greater disarray.

In an instant, Kayneth's hopes of winning the Grail War were destroyed in an instant.

The only thought on his mind at the moment was...

"What sort of mage would be happy winning in such a way?"

From what he knew, it had to be the Magus Killer, the freelancer that was hired by the Einzbern. The alchemist family had little combat ability. Such a family needed some insurance to win.

"...I see...It was all a part of that disgraces plan... and the Einzbern family went ahead with it."

His Lancer would be engaged with the Einzbern's Saber, while the Magus Killer's Archer would shoot Lancer in the back securing an easy victory for the Einzbern.

Even if he was able to cheat the system by getting his wife to supply Lancer wtih prana, his opponents took it too far.

Mages do not follow conventional laws, so they have to at least follow the rules they set before themselves.

It seemed that having 2 of the 3 knight classes under their disposal wasn't enough.

Such disgraceful actions had to be punished, but Kayneth had no means to do so without a servant.

Winning was an impossibility now, but that didn't matter anymore.

Kayneth would need to ally himself with one of the remaining Masters and take out the Magus Killer personally. Surely, proper mages would appreciate his expertise.

 _Behind the Lines_

Before the fighting began Kirei posed a question to the servant he had summoned. For the contestants of the Holy Grail War, no future was guaranteed, so Kirei was compelled to ask. He knew he was born different from everyone else. He could never derive joy through normal means and the answer to why that surfaced time and time again was something he could not accept. As he conducted research on the enemy masters, one man in particular drew his attention. A man he believed could understand him. He believed that they were similar and the servant before him carried herself in the same way. If a summoning without a catalyst would draw the servant one was most compatible with...then...

"At the end of your journey...What answer did you find?"

"An answer I will never accept...even if I know it to be undeniably true."


	2. Chapter 2: Escalation

Ch2: Escalation

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Unknown to schedules, nor known to proof read.

***A certain room in a certain Castle***

Lancer had perished. That was one obstacle out of the way, but the way he perished was unsettling. There was nothing the servant of the Lance could have conceivably done to save himself with the exception of a command seal. Those were musings of Emiya Kiritsugu mind as he checked the video footage of Lancer's last moments over and over.

Archer was undoubtedly a threat. A servant that simply comes and goes taking pot shots without warning could only be thought of as such. Saber could have easily been the one in Lancer's place if not for superior luck.

Using Saber to lure out opponents as he hunted down the enemy masters was no longer a viable tactic with such an Archer in the equation, but that was to be expected.

The servant classes were never equal from the start. From base parameters alone, Saber on paper was the strongest with the highest base stat total without inherent disadvantages. For the other servants to overcome Saber, they had to fight outside Saber's specialty and coerce Saber into their own pace, whether it was speed, range or cunning.

The Archer caught on footage wore a school uniform and with that asian face wouldn't be out of place intermixed with Fuyuki's populace which had some unsettling implications. It could be assumed her clothes were of the same nature as the suit he had bought for Saber, nothing more than something to blend into the modern world.

Thinking of potentially pragmatic opponents, Assassin has yet to show up.

A heroic spirit's strength is usually proportional to the age and grandeur of their legend which makes the Assassin class a contradiction for the best Assassin's are those that can murder without implications. The Hassan which the word "Assassin" is derived are the standard candidates where the class name itself acts like a catalyst, but that is not a certainty.

With the exception of Assassin, the servant specialised in killing Masters, the non-knight class servants with their lower base parameters are lower on the priority list.

The Berserker seen at the docks wielded no noble phantasm that could be seen. Though depending on the spirit contained in the class container, Berserker could be very formidable in battle, but they were the worst to field in terms of logistics. While the weakness of any Servant is the Master which binds them to the mortal world, the Master of Berserker could easily be finished off in a battle of attrition by depriving them of external mana sources. Berserker could not be fielded effectively by a normal Master without external sources of mana, either through consuming the souls of the local populace or consumable items prepared years in advance which are both susceptible to explosives.

Considering Saber's strong magic resistance, Caster was a non-issue.

Though Rider did not appear at the dock, Kiritsugu was currently observing him from a security camera in the castle's garden sharing a drink with Saber who was accompanied by his wife. Rider divulged his identity first which unfortunately convinced Saber to do the same. He was strongly contemplating just capping Waver Velvet who could be assumed to be contracted with Rider right then and there.

***A certain Castle's Garden***

"So you, the king, are a slave to what is right?"

"That is acceptable. A king is a martyr to their ideals."

"That is not how a person should live, but enough of that, there are more pressing matters to address such as the true Archer of the war."

"Are you implying that the servant I encountered at the docks is only masquerading as Archer?"

"Yes, I encountered the real one when crossing the bridge. If not for command spell, my fight would have ended right there."

"So a knight-class servant is capable of such a thing..."

"This also implies a pre-existing alliance was in effect long before this war had even begun, so I ask of you, will you join me and fight by my side?"

"You ask a fellow king that?"

"If I were to be honest, you are only a little girl, enraptured by a false idol of a king who serves others, but not themselves."

"To ensure their country's prosperity, a king should make any sacrifice."

"I disagree, but it seems, you and I will only continue to disagree."

Though Rider and Waver left on the flying chariot, the hole they made in the castle still remains which could prove to a potential security liability in the future.

Without fanfare, something snuck up behind Saber and Irisviel.

"If you truly wish to save your country, then make a contract with me and become a magical girl."

The same creature which accompanied who they thought to be Archer appeared before them without warning and Saber was already on guard. Irisviel could not help but think the small creature before them was of Einzbern origin, from the white fur, red eyes and the rings which adorned the projections from its ears.

Saber did not respond to the offer and instead sought out the creature's companion.

"Show yourself!"

"Who are you referring to?"

"Your master."

"I think you may have misinterpreted something. Akemi Homura is not my master."

"Then what are you?"

"I am Kyubey."

"What do you mean by wish?" Irisviel interjected. The connotation of Acht with 8 and Kyu with 9 was things that simply rushed to the forefront of her mind, especially given Kyubey's aesthetics.

"It is simply that, a miracle. There were times when we tried to contact Miss Arturia Pendragon in the past, but a third party had always intervened."

If that third party was Merlin, then there were reasons to doubt this creature, despite the reasons one may doubt the Magus of Flowers.

"Then who is this Akemi Homura?"

Kyubey tilted its head to the side.

"To be honest, we are not sure either as we ourselves don't recall ever contracting her. Though in this Holy Grail War, you would know her as Assassin."

Even with knowledge provided by the grail, the name Akemi Homura did not match the name of any known hero Saber knew. The name could easily be a false one. The one thing that Saber could count on was the fact Kyubey knew her name. She trusted that Rider wouldn't divulge her name to others as a fellow king even if he didn't regard her as such. She swung her sword and bisected Kyubey which was something even Kiritsugu would have approved of, yet that did not keep Kyubey from speaking.

"That's unfortunate. If you are going to refuse, then have the courtesy of destroying our bodies. It's quite wasteful."

Another Kyubey appeared to consume the one that was slain. Red eyes, white fur and a disposable wish granting devices; if the Kyubeys were what they claimed to be then Irisviel could not help but associate them with Einzbern homunculi much like herself.

"If you ever change your mind Miss Arturia Pendragon, the offer remains indefinitely. It is your choice after all."

As Kyubey left, Saber was contemplating hunting down Assassin if she was near the castle, but such a thing would leave Kiritsugu exposed. With the default presence concealment skill, trying to hunt down Assassin could be a complete waste of time. If Assassin knew as much as Kyubey, then it wasn't hard to imagine she already knew that Irisviel was not her Master. Even though Rider had long since left, Saber could still sense a servant nearby.

With that telepathic link, Saber left the responsibility of the decision on Kiritsugu.

"Master, should I engage?"

"Engage them. I'll use a command spell if I need you."

Saber followed the nearby servant's signature and was met with quite the deranged looking individual accompanied by kids.

As Saber was pre-occupied with Caster, Kiritsugu had to entertain the other guests.

***The prior day in a certain hideout***

In front of Ryunosuke was a little boys and girls performing a ballet while screaming.

They weren't doing it voluntarily; in fact, they had no control of their bodies whatsoever.

When the performance was done, the performers exploded in showers of red and silver.

The silver coalesced together into a humanoid form and bowed. The red headed Master of Caster gave a resounding applause.

"So cool, that's how that robot from the future should have done things in that movie. So Blue Beard, why didn't you think of that?"

Caster wasn't very impressed and neither was the puppet master very proud.

"I'm sure I have demonstrated what it takes to join you."

Such were words Kayneth forced himself to say. Kayneth was desperate, he needed an ally. He scouted out the other masters, but it was apparent that none of them would accept him as an ally, especially that third generation Waver Velvet. The Tohsaka were clearly allied with the Church and the Einzbern with the Magus Killer.

When Kayneth approached the Overseer at the Church earlier that day, he was offered safe haven, but from their conversation it was clear, who the Overseer favoured. The head of the Tohsaka was the mentor for the Overseer's son.

Kayneth had trusted the Overseer for the Holy Grail War to be an impartial to the whole conflict despite family ties, but Asians always did hold those family ties with high regard considering their convention of putting the surname first.

At that point, Kayneth had conceded that the Holy Grail War was nothing more than some Asian conspiracy. The only reasonable ally, was the one clearly not a part of the conspiracy, which was of course the serial killer.

Even if the serial killer was crass, he had a servant. Besides, the simpleton was quite easy to entertain.

"I dunno. I need to see some more."

It seemed that Kayneth needed to provide more entertainment, but it was inevitable for someone of Kayneth's lineage to be recognized.

 _Behind the Lines_

***The prior day in a certain Church***

As Kayneth stormed out of the Church, Risei Kotomine was left alone at the Church save for one individual. The odd creature that occasionally accompanied his son's contracted spirit.

"His rant on Asians was quite perplexing; do you have any clue as to why?"

It was perplexing to Risei as to why Kyubey was conversing with him.

"Well, our religion did originate from the West so he may have a few things he disagrees with us."

"I can understand how some may argue for racial superiority out of pride in the scientific and industrial revolutions, but it is for that very reason that he is a magi who abhors the fruits of such revolutions that he remains a mystery. The idea of Eastern supremacy was shattered with superior western technology during the Opium Wars so that man who prides himself in mysticism is quite the contradiction."

"Magi can be perplexing, but at the same time, it seems that they are more greatly affected by the more mundane world than they would like to admit."

Unbeknownst to Kayneth, Kirei and Assassin were tailing him, keeping note of his activities. With presence concealment, not even a mage like Kayneth would notice her. From that rant, it was inevitable for Kirei to meet Kiritsugu, the man he believed held the answers. He simply hoped that answer would differ from his servant's based on what he gleamed off her memories.

Archer had taken a new vantage point, ever ready to provide his "allies" with heavy "artillery support". "Allies" was a term that should be used lightly as Archer would forever remain vigilant of Kirei's actions.

From his life as Emiya Shirou, Archer knew the type of person Kirei would eventually become. Archer hated the man just as much as he hated Emiya Shirou, or at least that's what he wanted to believe.

The young Kirei in his view was not unlike his younger self in some respects. Someone lost who clung onto something beautiful in hopes of becoming happy one day. Kirei clung to the Church not unlike how Shirou had clung to his borrowed ideals.

The Kirei and Archer of the 5th Grail War were both monsters who once sought to become the ideal "good" man that they both envisioned, whether that was an "Ally of Justice" or a respectable priest. The only difference between them was that one clung to an ideal to the very end and the other abandoned theirs to realize a personal truth.

Archer possessed a supply of sarcasm almost as impressive as his arsenal of blades. Archer acted the way he did in the 5th war because he liked to tease others, but the Kirei he remembered took it to the extreme.

Archer did not want to think the manner of monster Shirou was with his ideals peeled away and for that reason he had to be erased. That was the "fact" that Archer tried to embrace in order to convince himself the necessity of his self-destructive desire, while trying hard to suppress another important fact.

While Kirei was someone who derived pleasure through the suffering of others, Emiya Shirou from the very beginning was nothing more than a person who did not want those in his view to cry, but if Archer accepted this, his wish would become nothing.

"I know I am a sinner. I knew I could never be freed from the very beginning, but I believed it was the right atonement. I have always refused salvation because I knew it would never be given to me. It truly was a life with absolutely no value."

Such was the "truth" Archer had accepted.

"You can think of me as an "enemy of justice"."

That was the way Assassin had introduced herself and that was how she peaked his attention. As someone who had become to despise the "ally of justice", a part of him wanted to see how this war would end.


End file.
